The Opening Series for the 2021 Milwaukee Brewers comes in the shape of the Minnesota Twins. They do not have great memories of their last home series against the Twins, losing two out of the three back in August 2020. They were also outscored 10-20 in these three games.
2021 Milwaukee Brewers: Roster News
Heading into the first series of 2021, the Brewers have a strong roster to choose from. There are a few on the injury list as it stands coming up to the Opening Day.
Along with Justin Topa, Bobby Wahl, Derek Fisher, and Jacob Nottingham, the Brewers will also start with Mark Mathias and Tim Lopes on the 60-day IL.
The Brewers will still be covered in most areas, with Fisher, Nottingham, and Mathias being the main casualties as the season starts.
2021 Milwaukee Brewers: Mound Matchups
Thursday: RHP Brandon Woodruff vs RHP Kenta Maeda. Game time 1:10 PM CDT; FSWI, MLB Network, and MLB TV
Finally, a Brewers starter gets consecutive Opening Day starts. Woodruff is the first Brewers’ pitcher since 2014 to go back-to-back, that being Yovani Gallardo.
Woodruff finished 3-5, with an ERA of 3.05, as well as 91 strikeouts in just 73.2 innings. This led to the Brewers reaching on terms to avoid arbitration, whilst also having the faith to start the season with him. His last start against the Twins came in Minnesota, where the Brewers lost 7-1. Woodruff gave up nine hits in five innings and picked up just three strikeouts.
Maeda is as experienced as they come, however it is just his first Opening Day start in the USA. His five other Opening Day appearances all came in Japan. He has looked hot in Spring Training and continued his momentum from an impressive 6-1 campaign that saw him have an ERA of 2.70 and a WAR of 1.5.
Saturday: RHP Corbin Burnes vs RHP Jose Berrios. Game time 6:10 PM CDT; FSWI, MLB Network, and MLB TV
The first appearance of Corbin Burnes in 2021 is a highly anticipated one. We recently covered his impressive form and will look forward to him continuing his fine 2020 season. He finished the campaign with a 4-1 record, and an ERA of 2.11 in 12 mound appearances.
He struck out a huge 88 hitters in just 59.2 innings. This has shown a meteoric rise from Burnes, who had a massive breakout season in 2020. The previous article dove more into his arsenal and his pitches, and it showed how he will continue to improve. The 2021 Milwaukee Brewers will need Burnes to continue his 2020 momentum to have a chance at competing in the NL Central.
Sunday: RHP Adrian Houser vs RHP Michael Pineda. Game time 1:10 PM CDT; FSWI, MLB Network, and MLB TV
The third and final meeting between the two in this series sees the season-debut of Adrian Houser. There is plenty for him to improve on from the 2020 campaign. He finished with a poor record of 1-6 and an ERA of 5.30. His strikeouts reduced to just 44 in 56 innings. Despite these poor numbers, Houser showed promise in 2019, thus making him exempt from too many questions heading into 2021.
There is some pressure that he will need to prove his worth early on in the campaign, especially with the likes of Aaron Ashby and Ethan Small looking up into the Majors Roster with eagerness. His first loss last year came in the 4-2 defeat in Milwaukee, so he will be hoping for better this time around.
2021 Milwaukee Brewers: Series Prediction
There has to be some optimism around this series if the Brewers want to be regarded as main challengers for the World Series. Their off-season has seemed smart, whilst they have given themselves happy headaches with all the outfielders at their disposal. The Twins are a dangerous side though and proved this by winning four of their six meetings in 2020. Their offense is strong, whilst their pitchers are hugely experienced.
I can see the Brewers taking the first two games of the series, but the Twins will win the final game. Adrian Houser seems to be the weak link in the pitcher line-up come the Opening series, thus allowing the Twins to pick up their only win of the series.
Brewers 2 Twins 1
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